The present invention is a suspended deck structure which allows for movement of floor and/or ceiling decks of constructions relative to their supporting framework. Such a structure may be employed in constructions having floor and/or ceiling decks for the support of persons, vehicles, furniture, equipment, etc; such as buildings, bridges, and towers. Suspended deck structures may also be employed in such constructions, mobile or immobile, that may be subjected to unwanted horizontal movement.
The most similar structure in prior art is the suspension bridge, in which a deck is suspended from tension elements hung between two towers, or in which a deck is cantilevered by tension elements attached to a single supporting tower. Suspension elements have also been used in tent structures, and for suspension of tiles and other ceiling surfaces from a roof /floor structural framework. However, none of these structures involve the suspension of floor and/or ceiling deck structures with tension elements within a structure from a framework. Otherwise, there does not appear to be any prior art that this invention builds upon except generally in the field of structural engineering, none of which directly addresses suspended decks.
The effect on the stories of a structure, such as a tower or building, caused by rapid lateral movement, such as occurs with wind forces and during earthquakes, may be addressed with the present invention. At least one "earthquake proof building" has been disclosed so-entitled in U.S. Pat. No. 5,605,021, which appears as a self-contained reinforced concrete vessel placed on the ground, and does not appear to have any significance as prior art except by its title. In contrast, and with respect to the issue of earth movement under a structure, the present invention can allow the interior decks of a structure to move relative to the framework of the structure from which it is suspended to compensate for the movement of the framework.
The present invention has elements that are covered generally by class 52, static structures, with consideration being given to subclasses 167.1+; and class 14, bridges.